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[SafeinSound]

The ending is probably the best ending I've ever experienced in a video game. And I don't mean the gameplay end of it, but the cinematic.

The way it captures the emotions of the characters and leaves you thinking. IS that really the response I would have? What would go through my mind?

And then the spectrum where you know Joel is lying. It's just so good.

 

[Vault Dweller 111]

One of my favorite endings ever. I was so invested in that point, and Ellie was already one of my favorite character of all time.

When Nadine was talking in that cutscene my first reaction was exactly Joel's, "fuck that, you're not taking her."

My favorite game.

 

[firelogic]

The worst is knowing that it would've worked.

Next time is the charm, I suppose?

It wasn't a cure, it was a vaccine and even if the vaccine worked, how are they going to mass produce it? How are they going to deliver it? It's not like the world is flush with resources. The fireflies aren't exactly rich. There isn't a mega corporation out there that can make and deliver the vaccine.

I'm not sure why some people outright hate what Joel did. I can see both sides but I lean heavily toward Joel making the right choice. Sure, the altruistic thing would have been to try making the vaccine at the cost of Ellie's life. One to save the many. But on the other hand, she became his daughter. If your daughter/sister/wife/brother/father/loved one was in a situation like Ellie, would you be able to leave her full well knowing that she's going to die in the hopes of producing a vaccine that may or may not work that may or may not be mass produced?

At best you liked the ending because I wouldn't sacrifice a loved one for the potential benefit of many because that person is more important to me than anything else. Selfish yes but put in the same situation, I'd bet no one would be able to leave their person to die. At worst, the ending should make you feel uneasy. Absolute hate I don't understand. We're also talking about a man who's already lost his daughter once. A man with no hope who was brought hope through Ellie. He knows what loss feels like.

 

[Fancy Clown]

The ending is amazing and contains an artful ingredient that is sorely lacking in most videogame stories: ambiguity. Videogames and their rabid fanbases are obsessed with the idea of deepening lore, finding answers to things, and having "satisfying" conclusions. Games like The Last of Us, Bloodborne, and Inside are like a breath of fresh air, showing the narrative power of leaving some things unsaid or up to the imagination.

It's also one of the reasons I'm sceptical about Last of Us 2 continuing the story of Joel and Ellie.

 

[Raylan]

Conversely it's weird because Joel did exactly what I wanted him to so I liked the ending.

Same here! Perfect ending.

"The world took something away from him, so he took something away from the world."
This game isn't a moralist approach, it's a realistic approach.

 

[texhnolyze]

I think the ending was great and makes sense. Ellie's expression gave me quite a chill.

What's underwhelming was the story. I totally didn't expected that from a 'masterpiece'. I feel like I've seen it before, and not just once.

 

[FrontalMonk]

One of my favorite endings ever. I was so invested in that point, and Ellie was already one of my favorite character of all time.

When Nadine was talking in that cutscene my first reaction was exactly Joel's, "fuck that, you're not taking her."

My favorite game.

I agree with this, and I also think it's important for the folks who think Joel was being selfish to consider something else: you're not wrong to hate Joel for his decision. If there's one thing that has been consistent about his character throughout the game, it's that despite the humanity you get to see in him by going on this journey and seeing the bond he has with Ellie grow the way it does...he is not a good person. Not by any stretch. Expecting him to "do what's best for mankind" just because you want it to be so would be about as narratively dissonant as all the times in GTA 4 that Niko complained about not wanting to hurt anyone now that he's in America, only to run people over and shoot them because you directed him.

The fact that a lot of people, myself included, agreed with the decision Joel made, speaks more to the bond we felt between the characters playing the game than anything else. In our minds, that was essentially his daughter and he would stop at nothing to protect her, and there's nothing wrong with that. But the rest of it needs to be considered as well. Joel stopped being a "good guy" in the prologue, and he isn't any more a "good guy" than anyone else in that godforsaken hellscape.

 

[Furoba]

I torched everyone, fireflies and all.

 

[guek]

As someone with an extensive medical background, it annoyed the fuck out of me that the first thing they try to do to create a vaccine in is do a full autopsy and harvest the brain.

 

[AudioEppa]

I torched everyone, fireflies and all.

I was quite satisfied putting a bullet in all the doctors faces nobody fucks with kiddo!

 

[Ricky_R]

ND were careful in providing enough room to relate to either Joel or Ellie. However, they were also careful in the way they told story, making Joel's behaviour and decisions toward the end quite justifiable. Ellie was never given a choice. If you think about it, after all was said and done, Joel was one of the most reasonable persons (all things considered) throughout most of the game as he followed through with his mission. It was only when they were going to kill Ellie without her even knowing, that he went nuts.

Being a father of a 3 year old daughter, I definitely relate to Joel and, in a situation like that, I would do the same without any doubt in my mind.

 

[Duxxy3]

Okay.

Spoiler

Hopefully ND doesn't fuck up what I thought was an incredible standalone story.

 

[John Kowalski]

There is simply no way another ending would have made sense, or fit the story of the game. The story is about Joel accepting the new world, and accepting the new world means letting Ellie live, against his hopes of regaining his past life.

 

[Spukc]

how could one not like that ending.

Spoiler

after loosing his daughter at the start of the game.

 

[Oidisco]

I'm kinda surprised some people think Ellie saying Okay at the end meant that she was fine with him lying and she was willing to go along with him. Seemed to me like Ellie knew Joel was lying and she was gonna leave him.

 

[mckmas8808]

I mean, imagine if ellie was your kid, or little sister, or little brother. You're dead. Would you want some stranger to find her, save her, come to love and protect her like his own,.. then let her Die? Hell no.

AND on top of all of that.....remember the Fireflies have literally been trying to kill you for years. Now you are supposed to trust that they will first find the cure in this new "daughter" of yours and then recreate it enough to save the planet? MAN PLEASE!

 

[Kinyou]

It took just 2 minutes for TLOU to go from 9.5/10 -> 8/10 game for me.

Putting me in the room full of the doctors that are the most brilliant minds in the world for that setting who are the pioneers in preserving humanity and forcing me to kill them was stupid. I spent 2-3 minutes trying to get out of the room or bypass the sequence without hurting them. The fact that the game gives you control but still doesn't provide any agency to affect the outcome was so unfortunate. Ruined what would have been a very powerful final hour of the game. If they just kept it a cutscene then I never would have been given hope of invoking a different ending.

Spoiler

I shot one doctor on the toe and it was still instant death....

You only have to kill the one doctor

 

[ShadowSoldier89]

Too easy. Wasn't easy for Joel, wasn't supposed to be easy for you.

It was easy for me!

Even given a 100% guarantee for a cure, I doubt Joel would've given it a second thought. The life of everyone else in the world wasn't worth as much to him as Ellie's

Since the last time this came up I went off on a comparative tangent so I'm going to do that again. Spoilers for 3 other properties. Life is Strange, Steins;Gate and Prince of Persia 2008

Life Is Strange

Spoiler

So the ending in this game boils down to nearly the same decision as the last of us. Either save Chloe and let the entire town get decimated by a giant mystical tornado, or sacrifice Chloe and end the mystical cause of the tornado saving everyone else. The big difference here is that as the player you are in control of Max's choice. The impact that The Last of Us has is lost. This story really feels built up to lead to the noble sacrifice ending, the opposite of the last of us, but in the end lets you be selfish if you want.

Steins;Gate

Spoiler

Steins;Gate doesnt have the 1:Many connection, but a similar 1:1 connection. In this case Okabe is forced to choose between two people he cares deeply about. Either the woman he has come to love, or one of his oldest friends. Hes stuck having to choose a timeline where one or the other dies. This is a contrast to LiS and TLOU in that you give a shit about both of them on far more than a moralist grounding, which is why having the triumphant 3rd ending where Okabe manages to find a way to save both of them ends up affording more emotional response from the player/viewer than the sacrifices would have. It also helps that it was brilliantly foreshadowed right from the start.

Prince of Persia 2008

Spoiler

This is the most similar to the Last of Us's ending. The prince finds out that the super demon thats been terrorizing them the whole game was actually only released because of a deal made with him to resurrect her. The end of the game has her giving up her life to end the deal and reseal the demon. However as the credits role the prince turns around, resurrects her and releases the demon again. All of a sudden everything is undone. The entire game's story is back to where it started because the prince made a selfish choice, and FULLY against Elika's wishes. This is even less ambiguous than Joel's choice and whether or not Ellie was ok with it. Here we are CERTAIN that Elika wanted to give up her life (A life that was already lost once before) to remove the threat to the world.

 

[jg4xchamp]

I like the idea of the ending, but the execution sucks. It is overly manipulative in trying to make Joel seem like he is making the right decision. They didn't need to make the fireflies seem like total assholes for no good reason. It only makes the player feel more justified in slaughtering them at the end. When really, the opposite reaction should be happening.

Yep, I still think the ending is great, but little cassette tape that says the Fireflies aren't even sure that the cure will work or are borderline sure it won't work was a cheap cop out. Should have never been there. It's a more interesting ending when the player and joel are attached enough to Ellie to not let her go out like that, but the greater good would have been to have her take one for the team.

As it stands it sort of lets you and Joel slightly off the hook. He's still very much a selfish character, but not overly so.

 

[SlimySnake]

It's the greatest, most surprising, most adult ending ever put in a game. it treats gamers like adults and shatters every pre-conceived notions about us playing as the good guy. it makes us question ourselves and what we are capable of. i killed every single one of those doctors. all i needed was seeing their shadows over ellie from the window, i barged in and shotgunned them one by one. it's only after the nurse said you are monster did i realize what i had done. I shot her anyway.

And then came the brutal execution of Marlene. i was like holy fucking shit this guy is cold. then came the lie. then the little wiggle of his watch his daughter gave him and it slightly justified his actions even if they were for a selfish reason.

And then came the OK. Ellie obviously realizing that Joel's lying to him and deciding to accept the lie. In that moment, she goes from victim to something more. She controls her own destiny, and yet still makes the choice to be with the person who has clearly lied to her. it's adult, it's bittersweet, it's heartwrenching seeing as they both wont be the same again, their relationship wont be the same again despite both doing awful things to stay together. it's easily the best ending ever.

It reminded me of this amazing ending of Whiplash. I will spoiler tag.

Spoiler

 

[hank_tree]

The only thing I didn't like about the ending was that if you tried to it shoot the doctors it didn't work. If that's not a valid option then don't present it like it is.

For example, in my game Joel decided that sounding the doctors would be sufficient so he shot one in the big toe and he died instantly anyways.

Took me right out of the game. Should have just MGS3'd it where you had to pull the trigger but you couldn't aim etc.

 

[Raylan]

I shot the Doc as soon as I entered the room and he was threatening me. Fuck him.
Had to save Ellie.

 

[GifGafIsTheBestGaf]

I shot the Doc as soon as I entered the room and he was threatening my. Fuck him.
Had to save Ellie.

So you could say it was Justified

 

[mckmas8808]

You only have to kill the one doctor

WHOA! Never knew this.

 

[mckmas8808]

Yep, I still think the ending is great, but little cassette tape that says the Fireflies aren't even sure that the cure will work or are borderline sure it won't work was a cheap cop out. Should have never been there. It's a more interesting ending when the player and joel are attached enough to Ellie to not let her go out like that, but the greater good would have been to have her take one for the team.

As it stands it sort of lets you and Joel slightly off the hook. He's still very much a selfish character, but not overly so.

It's not a cop out if that scenario is plausible. In this world that TLOU is in, why would the doctors be 100% sure it WOULD work?

 

[prag16]

The worst is knowing that it would've worked.

Next time is the charm, I suppose?

How did we know it would have worked? Did I miss something in the lore while playing the game?

Joel isn't doing this purely selfishly. If it was a guarantee of a cure; if there was a more organised medical team than simply a few docs in a firefly stronghold then he might have behaved differently. Yes I'm sure he was being selfish but I also believe he was acting in the best interests for Ellie too

This..

 

[MorshuTheTrader]

I loved the ending because Naughty Dog wasn't afraid to let the characters they built stand on their own. I absolutely hate when a game builds up characters and then just gives you an arbitrary choice at the end.

Your personal life and experience shades every decision you make and part of the magic of story telling is seeing perspectives on situations through characters that may or may not have vastly different backgrounds to yourself. You get grow by attempting to understand the motivations behind the characters, whether you agree or not.

 

[Novel Mike]

The big thing with the ending is that you have to understand Joel as a character. Yes, Joel takes the choice away from Ellie but that is completely within his character because in the end he is a layered man. He is a brutal at times psychotic bastard but he is still a person, he was a father. The opening level shows us how he couldn't save his daughter and how it ate him alive and he wasn't the same after that. So when it gets to the final level and hes faced with once again losing someone he thinks of as his daughter now he refuses to let her go.

Even this decision is layered, on the one hand he doesn't want to let her go because for the first time in decades hes found someone to care for someone that makes him feel alive again. Tess was important to Joel but its clear from the way they talk to each other Joel doesn't truly love Tess, not like he loved his daughter or ends up loving Ellie, they don't have that connection.

Then he also likely thinks that in some way this is his redemption. He couldn't protect Sarah and hes hated himself for it ever sense but faced once again with a situation where his daughter is going to die he doesn't care who he has to kill or what he has to go through hes going to save her this time.

Then on another thought Joel realizes how miserable he will be without Ellie in his life so he doesn't care whats right or wrong or what Ellie would pick. He's gone through enough horrible shit in his life and hes not going to let himself be fucked over again so fuck the Fireflies, Marleen, and the rest of the world he deserves to be happy for once.

All of those thoughts are running through his head during the final level and ending, the anger, self hatred, sadness, fear, loneliness, ect. IT's a massive expression of varying different thoughts and emotions and you as the player may hate the choice he makes but at least you should understand it. There is a reason that opening level exists where we have to watch Sarah die, there is a reason we are shown that Tess and Joel's relationship isn't one of deep love, there is a reason we are shown just how brutal Joel really is, and is a reason why we never get to make that final choice because this isn't our story its Joels and we as the player are merely the tool guiding the hand of Joel through HIS story.

Knowing this, say ND hate let you as the player pick what you wanted to do, to let Ellie die for the good for humanity don't you see how that would have ended? Joel would have watched Ellie die and been so overcome with grief and sadness that he'd just kill himself right there and roll credits because he just can't take anymore. Is that really the ending you'd want to see?

That's why the ending itself is perfect because its the ending of Joel's story and even though the Last of Us Part 2 is coming that will be Ellie's story and I can only hope ND is able to deliver that in the same amount of detail that they did for Joel and his story here.

 

[ReubyJuice]

The ending was a perfect, frustrating end to the journey. It seemed a perfect summation of the game to me. You spend an entire year fighting to get somewhere and stay alive, but for Joel if he lost Ellie then there would be nothing left to fight for. So he needs a reason to keep fighting, he needs a reason to survive. And the warm fuzzies he's going to get from being part of the possible cure doesn't outweigh the tangible loss he will feel from losing Ellie.

 

[krae_man]

The one thing I remember about the ending is Naughty Dog didn't program a burn animation for one of the doctors. I got there and though "Hey, I haven't used this flamethrower yet" and fired it at one and they just rag dolled to the ground without a scratch on them.

I have a theory that TLOU2 is about Ellie trying to find Marlene's killer(s) only to find Joel's the one she's looking for and that's why he was trying to talk her out of it.

 

[Rimark]

Totally agreed with some in this thread, that this isn't about choice of your own moral values and some forget your are not Joel. This isn't a role playing game where you create an image of yourself. The story was made for you to understand him and what makes up his decision in the end.

Joels decision was within his character and I totally get that, regardless of I agree with it. There was also this preconception that I believe was even addressed in the game, that there is not even a 100% guarantee that the operation will produce any sort of result. Which makes it a really really rough moral choice of Joel, would it be okay with him to leave her to death even if it meant a slight chance at a better future?

Anyways, I love the ending for how the story telling and commitment to the characters lasted all the way to the last scene.

 

[Venture]

I replayed Last of Us and Left Behind just the other day and there were some similarities to the endings that stood out to me. Riley reminds me a bit of Joel when she and Ellie are sitting there trying to decide what to do. Instead of taking the "easy" way out she says they should fight for every second they get to spend with each other: "We don't give that up."

You could also argue they decided on the selfish choice. In order to spend the little time they have left together, they will be putting other people at risk by becoming infected.

 

[bitbydeath]

The only thing I didn't like about the ending was that if you tried to it shoot the doctors it didn't work. If that's not a valid option then don't present it like it is.

Yeah, all Joel needed to do was cut their hands off so they could never be doctors again, but as their was no option for that death was really all that remained.

 

[Clear]

It still amazes me that anyone sees the Fireflies as being capable of being the saviours they make themselves out to be by the end.

 

[Raylan]

So you could say it was Justified

 

[Eppy Thatcher]

Playing this game with a daughter sleeping next to me for 75% of the experience put me in a place where I couldn't imagine feeling/doing anything other than what Joel was doing. So rather than the disconnect you feel - i was an adrenaline and gritted hateful teeth murder death machine through the hospital. 100% in line with Joel's character and motivation in my personal feelings at that point of the game.
Shooting Marlene in the face in that brilliant exchange... fast, brutal and cold... felt amazing. I felt amazing. Like someone had taken MY daughter and had the audacity to assume they knew better than me or her what she would want. And not letting me say goodbye after clocking me in the head when i'm trying to save her fuckin life?
Oh you bet I was seeing red.
I thought it was brilliant that - in that sense, for me as a person in particular - I was in that game. Completely enveloped.

And then the ending. Both appreciation for the craziness of the cut to black. The finality of it. And also the fact that I felt a little guilty. That waver to Joel's voice... i sound like that when i'm unsure or feeling caught/called out.

I love that you kind of hated it because of "Joel's" actions.. and I love that to me it felt like "My" actions because I was so in tune with how Joel was feeling.

That headshot tho...

"You'd just come after her."

Potentially my favorite line/moment out of anything from the last generation.

 

[n0razi]

What I got from the game was that humans are shitheads... they were worse than the zombies so it made perfect sense to be selfish.

 

[PatThePassive]

The whole possessive angle with Joel is not a feeling I ever had at all. It always felt like a completely two-way, loving relationship to me. I do agree that Joel's one real act of selfishness was lying to Ellie.

This is why I hate that they left it open because we don't get the confirmation in either of our views on the relationship and ending.

That's why its a bad ending.(opinion)

Its open so now we get threads like this every now and then.